An American football is a difficult object to catch when thrown or otherwise propelled through the air during play. However, the ball is usually, when thrown or punted, rotating about the major axis of its prolate spheroid shape. In this regard, football players whose designated positions, such as pass receivers, require frequent catching of the ball are coached to position their hands in certain ways when receiving the ball generally above the waist and below the waist, the two major catching positions requiring a different positioning of the hands, respectively. For example, football players are typically coached to position their hands with palms facing toward the ball, with the index fingers touching or close to touching and the thumbs touching or close to touching and spread to form a so-called "diamond" shape for catching the ball generally above the waist. Conversely, players are coached to position the hands with palms facing toward the ball, the little fingers just touching each other and the hands spread open to approximate the shape of an inverted letter when catching the ball in a position generally below the waist.
These positions of the hands are not natural and mere verbal admonitions or coaching instructions are not easily followed during training or practice exercises. In this regard, there has been a need to provide a way to emphasize the proper placement of the hands for catching a football both above the waist and below the waist so that during pass receiving and punt receiving training exercises the player's hands, whether a defensive or offensive player, are properly placed so that the player will "remember" during actual play to place the hands in one of the preferred positions for catching the ball. It is to these ends that the present invention has been developed.